The Worst Weather Days in Abilene History

The stormiest day in Abilene's history had a category F-4 tornado, June 10th 1909, in what is Dyess Air Force Base today. In 1909 there was a single farmhouse with lots of cattle and a family of five. The family made it into the cellar just moments before the tornado hit. When the family surfaced after the storm unharmed, the house, barns, trees, fences and all their cattle had been stripped from their land.

An 'unexpected' freak winter storm kicked off Easter weekend by leaving Abilene covered in a blanket of snow. The storm left a total of 9.3 inches of snow.

The hottest day in Abilene history was recorded on August 3rd 1943, when the mercury peaked at 111 degrees. The record books show that the heat wave of 1943 took it's toll, more so on livestock and pets though.

We have had some cold days in recent Abilene history, I recall the winter of 2009, yet that pales in comparison to the -9 below temperatures and -20 below wind-chills in early January 1947.

With as much drought as we've seen here in Abilene in the last 10 years. It's hard to believe that we were once the precipitation capital of the Edwards Plateau. In 1928 Abilene in one single day, received 6.54 inches of rain, causing massive flooding throughout the city and the county.

Abilene has two other significant months that deal with the wind. They are March generally the windiest month of the year, and August the least windiest month of the year, on average. However, on June 10th 1951, the wind was recorded blowing at 109 miles per hour in Abilene, causing major property damage.